EPA Settles Asbestos Management Violations With Clay County, WV School District

On January 27, 2010, the EPA announced it had settled with the Clay County, WV School District with regard to alleged asbestos reporting violations.

The investigation centered solely on alleged asbestos reporting violations. No asbestos materials were disturbed or removed, and no students, faculty or staff were at risk for inadvertent exposure to the dangerous mineral.

After an investigation conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Agency determined that the Clay County School District in Clay, WV had failed to follow regulations regarding inspecting and reporting on the presence of asbestos at the district’s schools. The district had been cited for one violation of the Asbestos Hazards Emergency Response Act (AHERA) for a reporting violation involving one of the district’s elementary schools.

Asbestos Reporting Violations
The investigation and citation were the result of a 2007 inspection conducted by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHS). During the inspection, the DHHS determined the school had failed to comply with AHERA regulations requiring that all areas in school buildings containing asbestos must be inspected at least once every three years.

As part of the District’s settlement with the EPA, they were fined $5,525. However, since the school spent $600 to come into compliance with the AHERA regulations, that fine was reduced to $4,925.

All Schools Must Follow Inspection and Reporting Requirements
AHERA regulations require that all public, private and parochial schools in the U.S. follow a number of rules to make sure that students, teachers, staff and others using the building are kept safe from accidental asbestos exposure. Those regulations require schools to:

Perform an original inspection and re-inspection every three years of all asbestos-containing materials;

Develop, maintain, and update an asbestos management plan and keep a copy at the school;

Provide a yearly notification to parent, teacher, and employee organizations regarding the availability of the school's asbestos management plan and any asbestos abatement actions taken or planned in the school;

Designate a contact person to make sure the responsibilities of the local education agency are properly implemented;

Perform periodic surveillance of known or suspected asbestos-containing building materials;

Ensure that properly-accredited professionals perform inspections, response actions and prepare management plans; and

Provide custodial staff with asbestos-awareness training.

Exposure to Asbestos Can Have Serious Health Consequences
Asbestos-containing materials (ACM) were commonly used in school buildings either built or renovated before the late 1970s. Asbestos materials were used in flooring materials, to insulate boiler rooms and steam pipes, in the cement applied to walls, and in many other areas in aging school buildings.

When asbestos is disturbed, those who breathe in asbestos dusts and fibers are at risk to develop asbestos-related diseases many decades after they are first exposed to the dangerous carcinogen (cancer-causing substance).

Tragically, because of the amount of asbestos present in many older school buildings, elementary school teachers rank are among those at the highest risk to develop asbestos diseases such as mesothelioma cancer, asbestos-related lung cancer or asbestosis. The time between exposure and when symptoms of an asbestos disease can be 40 or more years long (known as the “latency periods”), meaning that teachers who were first exposed in their 20s may not be diagnosed with an asbestos disease until they are at retirement age.

How Weitz & Luxenberg Can Help
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease, we may be able to help you to seek justice for your illness and file a lawsuit on your behalf.

Please complete the form on this page for a free and confidential review of your potential asbestos lawsuit or request a free copy of our asbestos sourcebook. A Weitz & Luxenberg representative will contact you as soon as possible.